WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Annika Sorenstam's worst year since she was a rookie offered one last hope Friday afternoon in the ADT Championship when she was among three players desperate to claim the last two spots in the chase for $1 million.
Considering how her season has gone, she might have seen this coming.
Sorenstam pulled a 5-iron into the face of a bunker, blasted over the green and was eliminated in a 3-for-2 playoff at Trump International, ending her year without a victory for the first time since 1994.
"I'll get over it," she said tersely. "I'll be back."
Just not for the weekend, where the 16 players who advanced to Saturday will start the third round with their scores wiped clean.
Ai Miyazato of Japan saved par with a 7-foot putt on the 17th hole in the playoff and two-putted from 35 feet on the 18th hole for par to secure one spot. The other went to Natalie Gulbis, who also had pars on the two playoff holes.
Mi Hyun Kim had a 2-under 70 and finished atop the leaderboard at 7-under 137, one shot better than Kraft Nabisco champion Morgan Pressel, who switched to a conventional putting grip for the first time in her life and is seeing instant gratification.
The clutch play came from Karrie Webb, who opened with a 76 and was on the verge of going home until she shot 70 with a stunning finish. Webb was a 3-over and hopeful of two-putting from 50 feet to at least get into a playoff. She fell to the ground when her putt dropped into the hole for birdie, qualifying for the weekend.
The quirky nature of this format was best illustrated at the end of the day. When the playoff was over, Miyazato and Gulbis instantly picked up 10 shots on the leader because everyone starts Saturday with a clean slate.
Also in the 16-way tie for first were Lorena Ochoa, Christina Kim, Suzann Pettersen, Cristie Kerr, Sophie Gustafson, Paula Creamer, Juli Inkster, Nicole Castrale, Catriona Matthew, Seon Hwa Lee and Sarah Lee.
Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press
Source: ESPN.com
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